Process of skiving and grooving counters



A. BLUSTEIN 3,046,582

PROCESS OF SKIVING AND GROOVING COUNTERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 13,1961 FIG. 2

FIG.I

July 31, 1962 FIG. 3

KNIFE LlNE- f2 A ,4 ii:

July 31, 1962 A. BLUSTEIN 3,046,582

Filed NOV. 13, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Unite States Patent 3,046,582PROCESS OF SKIVING AND GROOVING COUNTERS 'Abraham Blustein, Haverhill,Mass, assignor to Brown This invention comprises a new and improvedprocess of making molded shoe counters of tough stifi material such asfiberboard, vinyl compositions and the like. The U-shaped body of suchcounters must be sufficiently stiff to maintain the shape of the rearend of the upper throughout the life of the shoe, while the comfort ofthe wearer demands that the top marginal area of the counter be madeflexible and readily conformable to the ankle.

To accomplish these ends it has been the practice to skive a marginalarea of the counter blank, reducing it to a tapering feather edge, andthen as a separate operation to crease, groove or perforate the skivedarea to render it more flexible. The primary object of this invention isto effect two such functions in one and the same operation. The expenseof manufacture isv thus correspondingly reduced, in that my processrequires but one machine instead of two and also because it eliminateshandling of the counters by a second operator.

I have discovered that these results may be achieved by forming in aflat counter blank a marginal area tapering toward a feather edge and inthe same operation removing from the tapering area an elongatedgrooveforming strip spaced within the upper edge of the counter. In thisway a break line is formed in the counter at just the right place torender pliable and flexible the edge of he counter about the ankle ofthe wearer.

Going more into detail, my novel process may be carried out by modifyingany commercially available counter skiving machine by afiixin-g to thetapering feather edgeforming wall of the matrix cavity a cord that willcause transverse distortion of the blank within its tapered area so thatthe skiving knife will remove from the blank a continuous elongatedstrip, thus forming a grooved break line of reduced thickness in thecounter.

Preferably and as herein shown the cord may be adhesively secured to alength of pressure sensitive tape and applied to the matrix roll beneaththe tape. Thus the location and shape of the break line may be variedand adjusted to meet all conditions of style and material and noadditional equipment or machinery is required by the manufacturers.

These and other features and advantages of the invention will be bestunderstood and appreciated from the following description of a preferredmanner of carrying out my novel process, selected for purposes ofillustration and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in elevation of the rolls of a counter skiving machineequipped for the process,

FIG. 2 is a development of the matrix roll surface,

FIG. 3 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale showing a portion of thecounter blank,

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing the distorted shape of the counterblank at the knife line,

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken at right angles to that of FIG. 4, and

ice

FIG. 6 is a view in perspective of the improved molde counter.

The complete molded counter as shown in FIG. 6 is approximately U-shapedwith its central longitudinal zone 10 being of full thickness to retainpermanently its molded shape and with both marginal areas tapered towardfeather edges. The lower tapered area is molded into an inwardlydirected base flange, while in the upstanding top tapered area 11 isformed an elongated groove 12 which serves as a break line givingpliability to the upper edge of the counter. In accordance with thepresent invention the top tapered area 11 and the groove 12 are formedsimultaneously in a continuous operation as will now be explained. I

For this purpose it is proposed to employ a counter skiving machinehaving a matrix roll 20 with an elongated segmental cavity 21 defined byoutwardly inclined walls 22 and 23. In the skiving operation the centralarea of the counter blank is forced into the cavity 21 above the knifeline and so passes through the machine in its full thickness, while theinclined walls 22 and 23 of the cavity cause the outer areas or zones ofthe blank to intersect the knife line as suggested in FIG. 4.

The lower feed roll of the machine comprises a series of serrated feeddisks 30 spaced by washers 31 on a shaft 32. In the spaces between thefeed disks 30 are located presser fingers 33 and these fingers, actingat the bite of the rolls, force the counter blank into conformity withthe composite contour of the matrix roll as the blank meets the knife26.

The matrix roll 20, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, is modified in itseffective contour by adhesively attaching thereto a cord 24 that liesupon the upper inclined wall 23 of the matrix cavity and symmetricallyfollows its longitudinal curvature. As herein shown the cord 24 may befirst secured to a wider pressure sensitive tape 25 and secured to theroll by and beneath the overlapping tape.

The action of the matrix is well shown on an enlarged scale in FIG. 4.The upper edge area of the counter blank is caused to intersect theknife line and the cord 24 causes a portion of the area being reduced toform a bulge 13 so that the knife 26 removes a chip of the shape shownin FIG. 4 below the knife line, that is to say, upper edge of thecounter blank is reduced, tapering toward a feather edge and in severingthe bulge 13 a continuous strip is removed that results in the formationof the groove 12 as shown in FIG. 3. It will thus be seen that the twosteps of 1) reducing the top zone area of the counter to a taperedfeather-edge formation and (2) of cutting a break line groove in thiszone are carried out simultaneously in one and the same operation andwith a single.

handling of the counter blank.

Having thus disclosed my invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. The process of making shoe counters comprising the steps of formingin a fiat counter blank a marginal knife edge and one inclined areadistorted to present continuously to the knife a groove-formingprotuberance.

3. The process of making shoe counters, characterized by the steps ofskiving the upper marginal area of a counter blank and simultaneouslyforming a continuous longitudinal depression in the skived area by theremoval of a strip of material from the blank.

4. The process of making shoe counters, characterized by the step ofadvancing a flat counter blank between rolls to a skiving knife whiledistorting a marginal area of the blank, thereby tapering the uppermarginal area of the blank, and at the same time forming a longitudinaldepression in the skived area of the blank by interposing a cord betweenone of the rolls and the material of the counter.

5. The process of making shoe counters, characterized by the steps ofskiving the top edge area of a counter blank and simultaneously bulgingthe skived area by pressing a cord into it and removing the bulgedmaterial as a continuous groove-forming strip.

No references cited.

